2009 Best Book, International Political Economy Group of the British International Studies Association

This ambitious volume chronicles and analyzes from a critical globalization perspective the social, economic, and political changes sweeping across Latin America from the 1970s through the present day. William I. Robinson summarizes his theory of globalization

Overview

2009 Best Book, International Political Economy Group of the British International Studies Association

This ambitious volume chronicles and analyzes from a critical globalization perspective the social, economic, and political changes sweeping across Latin America from the 1970s through the present day. William I. Robinson summarizes his theory of globalization and discusses how Latin America’s political economy has changed as the states integrate into the new global production and financial system, focusing specifically on the rise of nontraditional agricultural exports, the explosion of maquiladoras, transnational tourism, and the export of labor and import of remittances. He follows with an overview of the clash among global capitalist forces, neoliberalism, and the new left in Latin America, looking closely at the challenges and dilemmas faced by resistance movements and at their prospects for success.

"An important book for anyone interested in where our imperiled planet is headed."— San Francisco Bay Guardian

"Robinson's latest book offers brilliant insight into the underlying causes and current dilemmas of globalization."— NACLA Report on the Americas

William I. Robinson is a professor of sociology, global studies, and Latin American and Iberian studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He is the author of several books on globalization, including A Theory of Global Capitalism, also published by Johns Hopkins.

Editorial Reviews

A scathing indictment of neoliberal globalization from an explicitly anti-capitalist perspective... An exemplary treatment of Latin America’s present day political economy and social predicaments.

 Jeffery R. Webber

San Francisco Bay Guardian

An important book for anyone interested in where our imperiled planet is headed. Robinson... is admirably thorough in his overview of the direction capitalism has taken in Latin America since the 1970s.

 Ben Terrall

Science and Society

This book is a must read, not only for Latin American specialists, but for all those who draw the connection between political economy at the world level and strategies for change.

 Steve Ellner

Latin America and Caribbean Contemporary Record

An important contribution to globalization studies.

 Benjamin Kohl

Business History Review

His heterodox and challenging views make provocative reading.

 Carlos Davila

International Journal of Comparative Sociology

William I. Robinson has demonstrated once again his importance as a theorist and socially committed academic with his book Latin America and Global Capitalism. This book is a 'must-read' for any scholar interested in the dynamics of contemporary capitalism as well as its specific features in Latin America.

 David Martin and Raul Delgado Wise

International Affairs

A provocative and worthwhile read for those interested in the political economy of Latin America as well as the processes of globalization.

 Sean Burges

Monthly Review - Jeffery R. Webber

A scathing indictment of neoliberal globalization from an explicitly anti-capitalist perspective... An exemplary treatment of Latin America’s present day political economy and social predicaments.

San Francisco Bay Guardian - Ben Terrall

An important book for anyone interested in where our imperiled planet is headed. Robinson... is admirably thorough in his overview of the direction capitalism has taken in Latin America since the 1970s.

NACLA Report on the Americas - James M. Cypher

Robinson's latest book offers brilliant insight into the underlying causes and current dilemmas of globalization.

Science and Society - Steve Ellner

This book is a must read, not only for Latin American specialists, but for all those who draw the connection between political economy at the world level and strategies for change.

Latin America and Caribbean Contemporary Record - Benjamin Kohl

An important contribution to globalization studies.

Business History Review - Carlos Davila

His heterodox and challenging views make provocative reading.

International Journal of Comparative Sociology - David Martin and Raul Delgado Wise

William I. Robinson has demonstrated once again his importance as a theorist and socially committed academic with his book Latin America and Global Capitalism. This book is a 'must-read' for any scholar interested in the dynamics of contemporary capitalism as well as its specific features in Latin America.

International Affairs - Sean Burges

A provocative and worthwhile read for those interested in the political economy of Latin America as well as the processes of globalization.

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What People are saying about this

Michael Hardt

Robinson's book is a model for critical globalization studies—empirically grounded and theoretically sophisticated. He shows us how Latin America is on the frontlines in the struggle to determine what will succeed the neoliberal paradigm of the capitalist global order.

 Michael Hardt, coauthor of Empire and Multitude

Greg Grandin

Building on his pathbreaking work on emerging transnational states, classes, and relations of production, William Robinson reveals the deepening, overlapping, and ultimately unsustainable global crises of legitimacy, overaccumulation, and polarization. Robinson argues with great analytical lucidity that Latin America's current 'left turn,' more than a manifestation of turbulence, is a struggle over the shape of the new world to come.

 Greg Grandin, author of Empire's Workshop: Latin America, the United States, and the Rise of the New Imperialism

Ronaldo Munck

William I. Robinson has delivered us a powerful statement on contemporary Latin America as both a product of globalization and a challenge to the view that 'there is no alternative.' This is a wide ranging political economy which is both well researched and eminently readable. A must!